J Street works to promote an open, honest and rigorous conversation about Israel. The opinions reflected in articles posted in the News Roundup do not necessarily reflect J Street’s positions, and their posting does not constitute an endorsement from J Street.
68% of Jewish Voters Favor Harris, 25% Plan to Vote for Trump, According to New Poll, The Times of Israel
“Democrats have for decades commanded majorities among Jewish voters in at least the mid-60s, in many instances topping 70%. In 2020, one poll by the Republican Jewish Coalition found that Jews voted for Biden over Trump by about 60% to 30%. A poll the same year by the liberal J Street found a notably different breakdown: 77% to 21%.”
Republicans Launch a $10 Million Ad Blitz to Boost Jewish Support for Trump, The Forward
“The Republican Jewish Coalition launched a major TV ad campaign on Monday targeting Jewish voters in battleground states. The ad, part of a $15 million effort to portray Vice President Kamala Harris as more in step with the far left than President Joe Biden on Israel. […] In 2020, Trump received 21% of the Jewish vote, according to an exit poll commissioned by the same pollster for J Street, while the Associated Press’ Votecast showed him with 31%. The GOP Jewish group spent $10 million in that election.”
US Urges Israel to Swiftly Investigate Killing of American Woman in West Bank, NPR
U.S. State Department spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters Monday that Israel has promised to share its findings with the United States first. “We expect that to happen as swiftly as possible. We expect that process to be thorough. We expect that process to be transparent,” Patel said. That is likely not to be enough to satisfy Eygi’s family, who are calling for the Biden administration to push for an independent investigation into the killing “to ensure full accountability for the guilty parties,” according to the family’s statement Friday.
Dozens Killed, Wounded in Israeli Strikes on Gaza Tent Camp, Gaza Agency Says, Reuters
Israeli airstrikes on a tent camp for displaced Palestinians killed and wounded 65 people in southern Gaza, the enclave’s civil emergency service said early on Tuesday, as the Israeli military said it had targeted a Hamas command centre. Residents and medics said a tent encampment near Khan Younis in the Al-Mawasi area, a designated humanitarian zone, was struck by at least four missiles.
‘Highly Likely’ Israeli Soldiers Killed US Citizen in West Bank, IDF Says, Axios
An Israel Defense Forces initial inquiry into the death of U.S. citizen Aysenur Ezgi Eygi during a demonstration in the occupied West Bank last week found it is “highly likely” she was hit “indirectly and unintentionally” by IDF fire, the IDF said in a statement.
Blinken Says Israeli Killing Of US-Turkish Activist ‘Unprovoked And Unjustified’, Agence France Presse
“Her killing was both unprovoked and unjustified,” Blinken said of the death of 26-year-old Aysenur Ezgi Eygi. “In our judgement, Israeli security forces need to make some fundamental changes in the way that they operate in the West Bank, including changes to their rules of engagement,” he told reporters in London.
Israel Asks Congress to Press South Africa to Drop ICJ Genocide Case, Axios
Israeli diplomats were instructed to ask members of Congress to issue public statements condemning South Africa’s actions against Israel and threaten that it could lead to suspending U.S. trade relations with South Africa.
Biden to Convene Aides on Hostage Talks as New Hamas Demands Sink Hopes for Deal, The Times of Israel
White House officials told senior Egyptian and Qatari officials earlier Monday that the US is “frustrated” with new Hamas demands on the release of prisoners serving life sentences in Israeli prisons, which it is seeking in exchange for hostages it has held since October 7, according to a person familiar with the discussions.
UN Rights Chief Urges States to Challenge Israel Over Occupation, Reuters
“Ending that war and averting a full-blown regional conflict is an absolute and urgent priority,” the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk said. “States must not – cannot – accept blatant disregard for international law, including binding decisions of the Security Council and orders of the International Court of Justice, neither in this nor any other situation.”
Palestinian Militants in the West Bank Flex New Capabilities, The New York Times
While Sunday’s border attack was considered the act of a lone individual with unclear intentions, other episodes suggest that militant groups have developed new technical, logistical and organizational abilities despite expansive Israeli efforts to contain their insurgency, analysts said.
Israeli Forces Detain a United Nations Convoy for Several Hours in Gaza, CNN
The IDF said in a statement they were acting “following intelligence that a number of Palestinian suspects were present in the convoy” and delayed it to question them. A military official later told CNN the suspects and the convoy had been released.
Palestinians’ UN Proposal Demands Israel Leave Gaza and the West Bank in 6 Months, AP
The proposed General Assembly resolution, which was obtained by The Associated Press, follows a ruling by the top United Nations court in July that said Israel’s presence in the Palestinian territories is unlawful and must end.
Father of Israeli Hostage Holds Netanyahu Responsible for Son’s Death in Heated Recording, Haaretz
“You owe all of them their lives,” he told Netanyahu. “Shut yourself in a room, think about Jewish values. Not about Israel’s Jewish identity – we’ll control this, we’ll control that.” Danino also called it a “miracle” that he, unlike the Goldin and Shaul families, was at least able to bury his son, then added, “What kind of a situation have you led us into, that burying my son should be a miracle? What have we come to? Please, wake up.”
Annexation, Expulsion and Israeli Settlements: Netanyahu Gears Up for Next Phase of Gaza War, Haaretz
Aluf Benn argues, “Netanyahu’s relinquishment of the return of the Israeli hostages, and his decision to ignore the majority position in the public and abandon them to terrible torture and death in Hamas’ tunnels, is intended to turn the tables on Sinwar: Rather than them being an asset and leverage for significant concessions from Israel, the hostages will become a burden on the Palestinians, as well as Israel’s justification for continued warfare, siege and occupation.”
Are Jewish Republicans Willing to Put up With Holocaust Denial?, The Forward
Jay Michaelson writes, “The base of the modern GOP is now soaked in antisemitism, white supremacy, and conspiracy theories. There is no denying it; Carlson speaks to them and for them. But, at the same time, much of this same base is, indeed, highly supportive of Israel’s own far-right government. Which makes sense: As far right nationalist movements, they have a lot in common. And, of course, a large percentage of the Republican base is made up of Christian Zionists, who want Jews to be in Israel so that the apocalyptic world war that will bring the Second Coming of Christ can get underway as quickly as possible.”
Amir Tibon, Israeli Journalist and Oct. 7 Survivor, on Life, Hope and Betrayal After the Massacre, JTA
Amir Tibon shares, “I also hope that people in the American Jewish community who have a tendency to always look away from the failures of Netanyahu and the Israeli government will realize that if they keep looking away, their children and grandchildren will not have a safe place in this world if, God forbid, antisemitism raises its head to the levels we’ve seen in the past. The state of Israel is in terrible danger. The state of Israel is the insurance policy of every Jew in the world, I really believe it. If we don’t fight to keep this country safe, strong, properly managed, prosperous and democratic, the Jews of the world will lose their insurance policy.”
After Expulsion by Settlers, Palestinians Embrace Precarious Return to Zanuta, +972
Hamdan Ballal Al-Huraini reports, “I had accompanied the residents of Zanuta as they returned to their village a few weeks ago. The sadness and pain was visible in their eyes as they witnessed the extent of destruction the settlers had left in their absence. Almost every house had been damaged with their walls smashed, and even the school had been torn down and ruined. Yet on that day, for many of the Palestinians, the sense of loss was almost outweighed by the joy of being able to return to their land.”